Age of Mass Politics: Ms. Susan M. Pojer & Miss Raia Ms. Susan M. Pojer & Miss Raia

The Age of Mass Politics  Ordinary people felt increasing loyalty to their governments  By 1914 universal male suffrage was the rule (female suffrage emerged after WWI)  Politicians and parties in national parliaments represented the people more responsibly as increased suffrage spread  Welfare state emerged, first in Germany, then in Britain, France and other countries  Governments came to believe public education important to provide society with well-informed and responsible citizens.  Governments often led by conservatives who manipulated nationalism to create a sense of unity and divert attention away from underlying class conflicts  Frequently channeled national sentiment in an anti-liberal and militaristic direction after 1871

The German Empire: Kaiser Wilhelm I (r ) had the ultimate power  A bicameral legislature was established.  Reichstag was the lower body which represented the nation (the Volk).  Bundesrat was the upper body which represented the various German states (conservative)  Between 1871 and 1890 Chancellor Bismarck established an integrated political and economic structure for Germany (while dominating European diplomacy)  Unified monetary system, established Imperial Bank and strengthened existing banks, developed universal German civil & criminal codes; established compulsory military service.

Bismarckian Politics  German political system was multi-party  Conservatives represented Junkers of Prussia  German middle class identified with German nationalism and provided support for Bismarck’s policies after 1866 until 1878 (later opposed Bismarck)  Center Party (Catholic Party) approved Bismarck’s policy of centralization and promoted the political concept of Particularism which advocated regional priorities  Kulturkampf: Bismarck sought to limit influence of Catholic Party in light of Pope Pius IX's declaration in 1870 of papal infallibility; Bismarck ultimately failed  Social Democratic Party (S.P.D.): Marxist; advocated sweeping social legislation, the realization of genuine democracy, and the demilitarization of the German gov’t.  Bismarck unsuccessful in limiting its growth (despite its being driven underground)

Bismarckian Reforms  Bismarck instituted a set of sweeping reforms in order to minimize the threat from the left  1879, a protective tariff instituted to maintained domestic production  Modern social security laws established  National sickness and accident insurance laws passed in 1883 &  Old-age pensions and retirement benefits established in 1889  Regulated child labor  Improved working conditions  Despite better standard of living, workers did not leave the S.P.D.  By gaining support from the workers, Bismarck successfully bypassed the middle class

William II (r )  Opposed Bismarck's move to renew to outlaw S.P.D.  To gain support of workers, he forced Bismarck to resign.  By 1912, the S.P.D. became the largest party in the Reichstag

England & France During La Belle Epoque

Essential Question: How “democratic” did Britain & France become by the beginning of the 20 c ?

The Third French Republic: The Paris Commune

Third French Republic Declared!  September, 1870 after France’s defeat at the Battle of Sedan.  Napoleon III abdicated the throne.  New government headed by Adolphe Thiers.  This new government continued the fight against the Germans who laid siege to Paris.  To defend Paris, a National Guard was raised numbering over 350,000.  France surrendered in February, 1871 after 40,000 Parisians died.

The Third French Republic  Thiers’ government was seen as:  Too conservative.  Too royalist.  Too ready to accept a humiliating peace with Prussia.  Prussian troops marched into Paris in March,  The French government established itself at Versailles, NOT in Paris.  Parisians were angered by this.  They opposed the policies of this new government.  It attempted to restore order in Paris.

Paris in Revolt!  The Paris Commune [Communards] was elected on March 28 and established itself at the Hôtel de Ville.

Civil War! Communards Troops from Versailles  The Commune was suppressed by government troops led by Marshal Patrice MacMahon during the last week of May,  Known as the “Bloody Week.”

Paris City Hall Destroyed

Attempted Communard Reforms * Allowed trade unions & workers cooperatives to take over factories not in use and start them up again. * Set up unemployment exchanges in town halls. * Provide basic elementary education for all  they were strongly against church-controlled schools. * Attempted to set up girls schools. * Day nurseries near factories for working mothers. Too little time to accomplish much!

First Communist Revolution? It served as an inspiration to later revolutionaries like Vladimir Lenin. * 25,000 Communards killed. * 35,000 were arrested.

Communard Casualties

The Third French Republic: Government Structure

Declaring the 3 rd French Republic

An Overview of the 3 rd French Republic  Politically very unstable.  Rivalry between monarchists and republicans.  A number of scandals:  The Boulanger Affair.  The Panama Canal Scandal.  The Dreyfus Affair [L’Affaire]  Because there were so many factions, all governments were coalitions.  Still, it survived longer than any other regime since 1789!

The Constitution * The President:  Head of state  little political power.  Right to dissolve the Chamber of Deputies with the support of the Senate.  Right to nominate the new head of government.  Played an important role in foreign affairs. *The Senate:  Elected by mayors & councillors in the counties throughout France.  Nicknamed the “Chamber of Agriculture” because the countryside was over represented.

The Constitution *The Senate:  Senators elected every nine years.  Very conservative body  able to block progressive legislation. *The Chamber of Deputies:  Chosen every four years.  600 members elected by universal male suffrage.  There was no organized party system.  Major political groupings in the Chamber:  Socialists  many were Marxists.  Moderate Republicans  middle class.  Radicals  anti-clerical.  Monarchists  Catholics, Bonapartists, etc.

The Third French Republic: Scandals

1. The Boulanger Affair * Bonapartism without a Bonaparte. * Most of the army was dominated by monarchists. * BUT, the Minister of War, General Georges Boulanger, was a republican.

1. The Boulanger Affair * Very popular with the troops  the government was suspicious and removed him in 1887.

1. The Boulanger Affair * Now a national figure, he was the focal point of conservative opposition to the republican government.  Was part of a plot to overthrow the Republic.  Was summoned to trial, but he fled to Belgium where he committed suicide on the grave of his mistress. *Boulanger’s fall increased public confidence in the Republic.

2. The Panama Canal Scandal : Ferdinand de Lesseps * President of the French Company that worked on the Panama Canal.  Govt. officials took bribes from the company to withhold news from the public that it was in serious economic debt.  One billion francs affecting 800,000 investors.

2. The Panama Canal Scandal : Ferdinand de Lesseps * All but on of the accused went unpunished due to lack of evidence. * Anti-Semitism:  Two German Jews were also involved  they received the most press coverage. *Results:  The scandal proved to the public that the Republic was corrupt.  It created a climate of anti- Semitism that would increase in time.

3. The Dreyfus Affair * In 1894 a list of French military documents [called a bordereau] were found in the waste basket of the German Embassy in Paris. * French counter-intelligence suspected Captain Alfred Dreyfus, from a wealthy Alsatian Jewish family  he was one of the few Jews on the General Staff.

3. The Dreyfus Affair * Dreyfus was tried, convicted of treason, and sent to Devil’s Island in French Guiana. * The real culprit was a Major Esterhazy, whose handwriting was the same as that on the bordereau.  The government tried him and found him not guilty in two days.

3. The Dreyfus Affair *A famous author, Emile Zola, published an open letter called J’Accuse!  He accused the army of a mistrial and cover-up.  The government prosecuted him for libel.  Found him guilty  sentenced to a year in prison.

J’Accuse!

3. The Dreyfus Affair Dreyfusards Anti- Dreyfusards * Public opinion was divided  it reflected the divisions in Fr. society. * The Dreyfusards were anti-clericals, intellectuals, free masons, & socialists. * For Anti-Dreyfusards, the honor of the army was more important than Dreyfus’ guilt or innocence.  Were army supporters, monarchists, & Catholics.

Dreyfus, the Traitor!

3. The Dreyfus Affair * Dreyfus finally got a new trial in * He was brought back from Devil’s Island white-haired and broken. * Results:  Found guilty again, BUT with extenuating circumstances.  Was given a presidential pardon.  Exonerated completely in  Served honorably in World War I.  Died in 1935.

The Zionist Movement Theodore Herzl [ ] *Was motivated by the Dreyfus trial to write the book, Der Judenstaat, or The Jewish State in *Creates the First Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland. *“Father of Modern Zionism.” *Was motivated by the Dreyfus trial to write the book, Der Judenstaat, or The Jewish State in *Creates the First Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland. *“Father of Modern Zionism.”

New Wave of Anti-Catholicism * The anti-clerical, republican left took power in the National Assembly in  This anti-Catholicism was a remnant of the French Revolution.  They stayed in power until *Ferry Laws [ ]:  Named after Jules Ferry, one of the ablest politicians of the 3 rd Republic.  Were the first major attempt at educational reform.

Ferry Laws * Only the State could grant degrees. * Free education in public primary schools. * Religious instruction was excluded from the State school curriculum. * Unauthorized religious orders [Marists, Dominicans, and Jesuits, who were eventually expelled from France] were forbidden to teach. * Authorized Catholic orders could NOT teach in French public schools. * State improved training of teachers. They created a deep division between Church and State!

The Third French Republic: Foreign Policy

Aims of French Foreign Policy 1. To regain the provinces of Alsace & Lorraine lost to Germany in To end her isolation in international affairs after the Franco-Prussian War. 3. To expand her colonial empire and regain some of her prestige lost after the Franco-Prussian War.

A National Trauma: France’s Loss of Alsace-Lorraine

French Colonial Empire * The empire set up under the 3 rd Republic was the greatest France had ever possessed. * Jules Ferry played a huge role in French empire building. * Ironically, two-thirds of the missionary priests outside Europe were French! * By 1914, France was the second largest colonial power in the world and the largest in Africa.

France’s Colonial Empire

1889 Paris Exposition * World’s Fair held in honor of the French Revolution Centennial. * The Eiffel Tower, completed in 1889, served as the entrance to the Fair.

1889 Paris Exposition: Gallery of Machinery

VictorianEngland

Britain: s * The most prosperous period in British history.  Unprecedented economic growth.  Heyday of free trade.  New fields of expansion  shipbuilding from wood to iron.  By 1870, Britain’s carrying trade enjoyed a virtual monopoly.  Br. engineers were building RRs all over the world.  Br.’s foreign holdings nearly doubled. *BUT, Britain’s prosperity didn’t do away with political discontent!

The “Victorian Compromise” * Both Tories and Whigs had considered the 1832 Reform Bill as the FINAL political reform. * Therefore, the aims of the two political parties seemed indistinguishable. * But, by the 1860s, the middle class and working class had grown  they wanted the franchise expanded! * This era saw the realignment of political parties in the House of Commons:  Tory Party  Conservative Party under Benjamin Disraeli.  Whig Party  Liberal Party under William Gladstone.

The Two “Great Men” * William Gladstone, Liberal Prime Minister    1886  * Benjamin Disraeli, Conservative Prime Minister  1868 

The 2 nd Reform Bill * In 1866, Gladstone introduced a moderate reform bill that was defeated by the Conservatives. * A more radical reform bill was introduced by Disraeli in 1867, passed largely with some Liberal support.

* Disraeli’s Goals:  Give the Conservative Party control over the reform process.  Labor would be grateful and vote Conservative. *Components of the Bill:  Extended the franchise by 938,427  an increase of 88%.  Vote given to male householders and male lodgers paying at least £10 for room.  Eliminated rotten boroughs with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants.  Extra representation in Parliament to larger cities like Liverpool & Manchester. *This ended the “Victorian Compromise.” The 2 nd Reform Bill

Benjamin Disraeli ( ) * A dandy and a romance novelist. * A brilliant debater. * Baptized by his father into the Anglican Church. * BUT, he was the first & only Prime Minister of Jewish parentage. * A strong imperialist.  “Greater England” foreign policy. * Respected by Queen Victoria.

William Gladstone ( ) * An active legislator and reformer. * Known for his populist speeches. * Could be preachy. * Queen Victoria couldn’t stand him. * Tried to deal with the “Irish Question.” * Supported a “Little England” foreign policy.

Gladstone’s 1 st Ministry  Goals: [“Gladstonianism”] 1.Decrease public spending. 2.Reform laws that prevented people from acting freely to improve themselves.  He’s against privilege & supports a meritocracy.  Protect democracy through education. 3.Promote peace abroad to help reduce spending and taxation, and to help enhance trade.  Low tariffs.  All political questions are moral questions!

Gladstone’s 1 st Ministry  Accomplishments:  1868: Army reform  peacetime flogging was illegal.  1869: Disestablishment Act  Irish Catholics did not have to pay taxes to support the Anglican Church in Ireland.  1870: Education Act  elementary education made available to Welsh & English children between 5-13 years.  1870: Irish Land Act  curtailed absentee Protestant landowners from evicting their Irish Catholic tenants without compensation.  1871: University Test Act  non- Anglicans could attend Br. universities.

Gladstone’s 1 st Ministry  Accomplishments (con’t.):  1872: Ballot Act  secret ballot for local and general elections.  1872: The settlement of the CSS Alabama claims [from the American Civil War] in America’s favor.  1873: Legislation was passed that restructured the High Courts.  Civil service exams introduced for many government positions.

Disraeli’s 2 nd Ministry  Accomplishments:  Domestic Policy  1875: Artisans Dwelling Act  govt. would define minimum housing standards.  1875: Public Health Act  govt. to create a modern sewer system in the big cities & establish a sanitary code.  1875: Pure Food & Drug Act.  1875: Climbing Boys Act  licenses only given to adult chimney sweeps.  1875: Conspiracy & Protection of Property Act  allowed peaceful picketing.

Disraeli’s 2 nd Ministry  Accomplishments:  Domestic Policy  1876: Education Act  1878: Employers & Workmen Act  allowed workers to sue employers in civil courts if they broke legal contracts.

Gladstone’s 2 nd Ministry  Accomplishments:  Domestic Policy  1884 Reform Bill  Extended the franchise to agricultural laborers.  Gave the counties the same franchise as the boroughs.  Added 6,000,000 to the total number who could vote in parliamentary elections.  1885: Redistribution of Seats Act  changes M.P. seats in Commons to reflect new demographic changes.

Gladstone’s Last Ministries  3 rd Ministry: 1886  First introduced an Irish Home Rule Bill.  This issue split the Liberal Party.  Gladstone lost his position in a few months.  4 th Ministry:  1893: Reintroduced a Home Rule Bill.  Provided for an Irish Parliament.  Did NOT offer Ireland independence!  Passed by the Commons, but rejected in the House of Lords.

Home Rule for Ireland?? Gladstone debates Home Rule in Commons.

Women’s Social & Political Union [W.S.P.U.]

Emmeline Pankhurst * * Her husband & children were all involved in the suffrage movement. * They became militants & were arrested and imprisoned. * 1917: She and her daughter, Christabel, formed the Women’s Party in 1917:  Equal pay for equal work.  Equal marriage & divorce laws.  Equality of rights & opportunities in public service.  A national system of maternity benefits.

Representation of the People Act (1918) * Women over 30 got the right to vote. * All men gained suffrage.  Property qualifications were completely eliminated! *Reform Act of 1928  Women over 21 years of age gained the right to vote at last!

Victorian England: Foreign Policy

The Foreign Policy Debate “Big England” Policy “Little England” Policy * Disraeli * Conservative Party * England must be the greatest colonial power. * Spend £ on supporting the empire. * Gladstone. * Liberal Party. * England must invest in her own people at home. * Try negotiations, rather than costly military solutions.

Victorian England: Foreign Policy Issues

1. “Scramble for Africa” * 1869: Disraeli pushed for the completion of the Suez Canal.

1. “Scramble for Africa” * Gladstone opposed the “Mad Scramble.” * : First Boer War in South Africa [Gladstone].

Congress of Berlin ( 1 878) * Purpose  Great Powers & Ottomans met to settle issues from the Russo- Turkish War. * Disraeli represented England.

Keep the “Sick Man of Europe” in Good Health!

3. India: The British Raj The new “Empress of India” receiving the “Jewel in the Crown” of her Empire.

Britain Is Everywhere!

England’s Economic Decline? (1870s-1914)  Germany & the U. S. became England’s chief economic rivals.  Influx of cheap agricultural products from overseas caused a rapid decline in British farming.  Germany & U. S. overtake Britain in basic iron & steel production.  England’s share of world trade fell from 23% in 1876 to 15% in  British science & technological education lagged behind Germany.  England is slow to modernize her aging industrial infrastructure.  England clings to free trade while everyone else is erecting tariff walls.

Fabianism  A British socialist intellectual movement founded in the mid-1880s.  Purpose  advance socialism by working through the political system, not through revolution.  Laid the foundations for the British Labour Party.  Famous Fabian Society members:  George Bernard Shaw.  H. G. Wells.  Sidney & Beatrice Webb.  Emmeline Pankhurst.  Bertram Russell.  John Maynard Keynes.

* Founded in 1900 by the Scotsman, Keir Hardie.  The growth of labor unions gave voice to socialism in Britain.  By 1906, it won 26 seats in Commons.  Had to form a political coalition with the Liberal Party.  By the 1920s, Labour would replace the Liberals as on of the two major British political parties. The British Labour Party

* Labour’s Political Agenda:  Gradual socialization of key industries & utilities.  Workman’s Compensation Act.  State employment bureaus.  Minimum wage set.  Aid to dependent children & the elderly.  Old age pension to all over 70.  National Insurance Act. The Beginnings of the “Welfare State”? How to pay for all of this??

* The Liberals dominated government from 1906 to * The Liberal Chancellor of the Exchequer, David Lloyd George, presented a “People’s Budget” in  Increase income taxes for those in the higher brackets.  Raise the inheritance tax. * The House of Lords rejected this budget. The “People’s Budget”

* A political crisis.  WHY?  Lords had traditionally approved all revenue bills passed by the Commons in the past.  By threatening to create enough new Liberal peer to control that chamber, King George V forced the House of Lords to pass this bill!! * Also known as the 4 th Reform Bill. * Provisions:  Lords could not defeat a bill passed three times by Commons.  Lords can’t hold up revenue bills for more than one month.  Members of Commons would be paid a salary. The Parliament Act of 1911

The Irish Question Timeline of Events  Young Ireland movement (1848) echoed nationalistic movements on the Continent  Irish Question was the most recurring & serious problem Britain faced from 1890 to  Gladstone had pushed unsuccessfully for Irish Home Rule.  Ulster (Protestant counties in northern Ireland) opposed Irish Home Rule as they started to enjoy remarkable economic growth from the mid-1890s.  Ulsterites raised 100,000 armed volunteers by 1913; supported by British public opinion  1914, Irish Home Rule Act passed by Commons and Lords but Protestants did not accept it.  Implementation deferred until after World War I.  Easter Rebellion (1916) for independence was crushed by British troops  1922, Ireland gained independence; Northern Ireland remained part of British Empire

Summary Question: Who was more “democratic” at the beginning of the 20 c —Britain OR France?